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Hugo Grotius Wiki
Welcome to the Hugo Grotius Wiki Page Hugo Grotius, a Dutch Enlightenment jurist and scholar who wrote in 1625 De Jure Belli ac Pacis - On the law of war and peace - which is considered by many historians and jurists one of the greatest contributions to the development of international law and natural law. Overview Hugo Grotius was born in Protestant Delft, in the Netherlands, on April 10, 1583. Even though he is best known for his enormous contributions to the natural law and international which emerged later and used in the modern period, his work varied greatly. De Jure Belli ac Pacis (translated: the rights of war and peace) along with Mare Liberum ''(translated: The freedom of seas) are the masterpieces for which he is most famously known for. Especially ''De Jure Belli ac Pacis ''laid foundations on the international law (A set of rules generally accepted and respected to keep relations between nations) and also discussed natural law. Quote Grotius in his masterpiece, De Jure Belli ac Pacis, once claimed: "''A man cannot govern a nation if he cannot govern a city; he cannot govern a city if he cannot govern a family; he cannot govern a family unless he can govern himself, and he cannot govern himself unless his passions are subject to reason." This quote shows that Grotius was a rationalist, and thought that everything, including passions, must be subject to speculation. For this precise purpose, Grotius writes that laws (reason) are above everything; including wars. Contributions to the Enlightenment De Jure Belli ac Pacis ''is a set of 3 books, that discuss different aspects of the war. In the first one, Grotius argues whether war, in general, is just, which leads to the discussion of the difference between public and private war, but turns out in a discussion of the nature and embodiment of sovereignty. In the second book; the causes of wars, the nature of property and personal rights in war, the responsibilities about ownership, royal succession, the rights secured by agreements, the force, and treaties, are all topics illustrated. Finally, in the last book, a question is discussed: ''What is lawful war? ''This question leads to discussing the consideration of the military code and the methods by which peace is achieved. In the '''Enlightenment', Hugo Grotius was the first to bring forward the idea that also wars should be fought respecting the law: "respecting a code of laws for war and a code of laws for peace". In fact, Grotius talks how there are different laws in the period of war, but still laws: "is true that in the conflict of arms laws must be silent, but only civil laws, which govern in times of peace". David J. Hill explains that there are some laws which are perpetual, and which come from the nature of mankind instead of the civic relations, these laws are in vigor also during the war. These laws of war are made to preserve the human nature itself and the "divine authority which has invested it with rights and obligations". So, to reassume, disobeying to the laws of war means to go back to barbarism, for this reason, there must be laws that are perpetual, also when wars occur. Grotius was one of the first to propose this concept, new at the time. Some historians and politicians refer to this perpetual law as natural law, a set of rules that is immutable even when institutions change, however, Ernst Wolf sustains that “Grotius' understanding, nature was not an entity in itself, but God's creation. Therefore, his concept of natural law had a theological foundation”. In fact in the Prolegomena (introduction) of his outstanding example, Grotius explains that the fundamental principles of ethics, politics, and law are functions of the essence of human nature, therefore of natural law. Even though the concept of natural laws goes back to the ancient times, Grotius gave an Enlightened point of view on this theory of natural law: for Grotius, "If an action agrees with the rational and social aspects of human nature, it is allowable; if it does not, it cannot be allowed". After New World Encyclopedia reveals that a study on human nature arrived at the conclusion that human nature consists of 2 basic desires or needs. The first one is the need for self-preservation, and then, the need for a society: to be part of something bigger However these 2 needs are in conflict as the desire for self-preservation is limited by society and on the other hand, the desire for society is limited by the urge for self-preservation. Additionally, the need for self-preservation and the inclination for society are both "emotive and cognitive, irrational and rational, instinctive and deliberate". So the solutions to have both of these desires people must: renounce from the property of others, and follow what really serves his interest. These 2 elements described are the basis of the natural law that Hugo Grotius described in his book. There are more than 20 additional laws, such that good actions are to be rewarded and evil or bad actions must be punished and corrected. to conclude, natural law is made so that it commands us to perform actions which contribute to our rationality, sociability, and need for self-preservation (the basic need of humans discussed previously). In politics, Grotius also gave rise to another theory on the sates. He sustained that the relations among states, which saw the states as essential parts in a big international society governed by a system of norms and laws that were authoritative in themselves (above everybody else), and not dependent on the action of a legislature or legislator. The Ironic part is that Hugo Grotius at the same time supported the other part of his theory which said that individual states should always engage in following their own interests, even though such interests may create a conflict with the natural law, allowing for the negotiation of a middle way; sais the New World Encyclopedia. Some, not all, of these concepts of natural law, international law, and the law of war are used and applied still today. However, after many hundreds of years after these books were published, Hugo Grotius has been analyzed very in depth and also criticized. For example, Grotius argues that slavery is correct because he correctly sustains that "if a man may sell his labor, why not his liberty?". On the other hand, Hugo Grotius was very forward on the idea that the state is and works as a moral organism, and must be governed "believing it to be the duty of a nation to enlist its energies for what it deems the right side" rather deny "actions foreign to its own interests" Interesting Statistics and facts * According to Mathew Lyons; Grotius showed an incredible talent for languages (especially for Latin) very early and by the age of eight he was already writing Latin elegies and more. * According to Jim Powell; Grotius for the entirety of his life always displayed an extraordinary passion for knowledge. He was considered a child prodigy. He achieved very impressive things as a young man. He also managed to continue learning when he was in prison, and in fact, his most famous work, De Jure Belli ac Pacis was written exactly in that period and it cited about 120 ancient authors. * Once, Grotius and 2 other people were arrested for a charge that wasn’t specified. For this occasion, a special tribunal of 24 judges was set up to hear these cases; sustains Jim Powell * Hugo Grotius wrote nearly 15 books and essays Did you know? * When Hugo Grotius died, 28 August 1645, he was 62, and ironically his last words were, "By understanding many things, I have accomplished nothing". * During the period of Hugo Grotius, European expansionism was beginning to push on the most convenient path the liberty of the indigenous peoples in the new continents such as the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Grotius took a position as he did not agree non-Christians should be excluded from the jurisdiction of natural law, since the natural law was applied to all rational and social beings, according to him. * ''De Jure Belli ac Pacis ''was a book of incredible influence, enough that it is said that the Swedish King, Gustavus Adolphus, kept a copy of it under his pillow, next to the Bible. * Jean-Jacques Rousseau or better known as Voltaire was one of Hugo Grotius' biggest critics More Resources Below are some videos and more on Hugo Grotius and Natural Law. This is a crash course of Natural Law before Grotius (Thomas Aquinas) This is a quizlet on Grotius and his achievements This is a funny song on the natural law seen from the point of view of Aquinas (ancient thinker) from whom Grotius got his inspiration This is another quizlet on natural law and other theories Category:Browse Category:Hisotry Category:Hugo Grotius Category:Jurist